Martha’s Village and Kitchen will use a $25,000 grant from the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation to ensure that more impoverished and homeless people in our area have a path to stable, permanent housing. The Coachella Valley Spotlight grant will support Martha’s Family Shelter Program that provides essential emergency housing, job training and meals to about 100 families annually.
“Martha’s has been an oasis of hope for the homeless and impoverished families and individuals since 1990, when it was only a small kitchen serving hot meals in Indio,” said Linda Barrack, CEO and President of Martha’s Village and Kitchen. “As the longest running resource of its kind in the region, our organization has grown with the community’s needs thanks to generous support like that of the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation and News Channel 3.”
Through donor and community support, Martha’s was able to build and open its current 120-bed facility in 2001. Apartment style living provides 24 spaces for families to stay together and 19 rooms for individuals, as they work toward stable living situations.
“It’s wonderful that Martha’s services allow for families to live at the shelter together during such a trying time of facing homelessness and all the other stresses that accompany it,” said Catharine Reed, Program Director for the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation.
Recognizing the diverse needs of the valley, Martha’s provides custom support services for each unique circumstance that empower people to improve their home and work situations. On-site services including emergency housing, food, case management, childcare, recovery services, integrated health care, and a career and education center. Last year, Martha’s served more than 6,200 individuals with these varied programs.
“With many people living one paycheck away from homelessness, Martha’s is a refuge for the impoverished to break that cycle through awareness, education and stable housing options,” said Jerry Upham, General Manager of Gulf California Broadcast Company, which owns and operates KESQ News Channel 3 and KPSP CBS Local 2.
Through the Coachella Valley Spotlight partnership with the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation and News Channel 3, Martha’s Village and Kitchen was featured on News Channel 3 programming including “Eye on the Desert” (which airs on CBS Local 2 weeknights at 6:30 p.m.), in public service announcements and on kesq.com throughout the month of August.
Martha’s Village and Kitchen is located at 83-791 Date Avenue, Indio. For more information visit www.marthasvillage.org or call 760-347-4741.